Dr Paul Allen

Reformed from the doctrine of the Roman Catholic church  Among the twenty-odd persons martyred for their beliefs during the decades preceding Scotland 's official embrace of Protestantism (1560), there was only one woman: Helen Stirk. The only information we have about Helen Stirk's life comes to us, ironically, from accounts of her death. We know that she was married, that she was the mother of at least one child, and that she was a woman of rather remarkable faith and courage. Beyond that, her life and doings remain shrouded in mystery. Helen was arrested in Perth on the 25th of January, 1544, along with her husband, James Ronaldson, and three other residents of the town, Robert Lamb, William Anderson, and James Hunter. Perth, like most of Scotland's east-coast towns, proved to be a hotbed for reforming ideas, largely because its shipping industry guaranteed regular contact with the European continent (and thus continental books and ideas). Sensitive to the inroads

The Reformed Church of France, Paris, France (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed" (James  5:16 ). Is corporate confession of sin enough? It is, but it  may not be . It all depends on who's asking. Let me explain.  Corporate confession of sin on the Lord's Day is a glorious, sin-debilitating means of grace. With solemnity, we confess as one body that we have not done the things that we should have done (sins of omission), and have done the things that we should not have done (sins of commission).  Then, with joy, we look away from our past sin and set our gaze on God's faithfulness to His covenant promises in the gracious work of Jesus Christ —His humble entrance into the world, morally-perfect life, wrath-absorbing death for our sins, victorious resurrection, and ascension to the right hand of the Majesty on high, where He continually and unfailingly intercedes on ou

George Whitefield, half-length portrait with hands raised, preaching in a church; portrait framed by oval. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) George Whitefield , preached “The Eternity of Hell -Torments,” in London in 1738. When the reality of the fate of those who perish in this life without Christ is again pressed upon one’s conscience, it always seems like a burden too great to bear. But, as Whitefield would say in the sermon , “If the bare mentioning the torments of the damned is so shocking, how terrible must the enduring of them be!” Truly this is the most solemn of subjects. But we as Christians — as preachers of the Gospel of Christ — we must give our minds and hearts to the biblical teaching of the unbeliever’s fate. And Whitefield has done us an excellent service. You can read the sermon in full here . As a preacher, it was instructive to observe the way Whitefield pled with his hearers to flee from the wrath to come. He was not content to simply parrot out a few stock

Let’s face it. Church is not always as exciting as we would like. Sometimes it’s boring and disappointing. It’s possible that there are good reasons for that. But it’s possible that there are not. Being bored is not the worst thing that can happen to us in our churches . In fact, it may be the best thing since it can present opportunity for personal change. Though not always, our personal boredom can often be symptomatic of a needed soul adjustment. Consider a few shifts before submitting to disappointment’s demands: Turn complaining about your church into praying for your church. If there’s one thing we know about complaining, it is fundamentally (whether intentional or not) a disapproving commentary on the perfect sovereignty of the One running things. God decreed everything about which we complain. He reigns. So, it’s possible that we our complaints are really sovereignty-protests. Even so, there are likely things about your church which need improvement or att

Christ in the Burning Bush (Photo credit: Lawrence OP ) 1 Peter  2:25  “For you were straying like sheep , but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” ( v. 25 ). A flock of sheep in the field is notorious for its tendency to wander about. When the flock has no shepherd, individual sheep can end up far away from their flock and in great danger. In his prophecy of the Suffering Servant , Isaiah tells us that we are like sheep that have gone astray (53:6). Like sheep, we are prone to wandering about aimlessly. We sin and lose our way, finding ourselves in all kinds of danger.  As with sheep, we are in need of a shepherd to guard us and to keep us in the fold.  Of course, as this passage tells us, Jesus is this Shepherd ( 1 Peter  2:25 ). Our Savior is the one who protects us and guides us. He is the one who restores us when we succumb to sin and find ourselves far from His presence. Peter also says Jesus is the “overseer,” or “bishop” (kjv) of our so

Author: Cripplegate. Roman Catholicism installed Francis as pope. And much has been made of his bus rides and apartment dwelling back home in Buenos Aires . (The fact that people are impressed by his studied avoidance of opulence actually speaks volumes about Roman Catholicism in general). But while the press fawns and Rome beams over his supposed humility, what should Bible-believing Protestants say? Probably something like this: “How great sin have you heaped up for yourself, when you cut yourself off from so many flocks! For it is yourself that you have cut off. Do not deceive yourself!” Now that would probably not make the cut for a Christianity Today editorial, like A Pope for All Christians , but it is how Christians responded the first time a bishop in Rome made the incredibly arrogant claim that he was supreme pontiff. Conflicting over Church Membership Stephen, the bishop of Rome in the third century (d. A.D. 257), was actually the first guy to pull the “no, you kiss my